It’s a common quandary of a Rescuer, one of the three roles that form the Karpman Drama Triangle, with the two others being the Victim and Persecutor.

They comprise the model of energy dynamics that explains what goes on in human interactions, those involving conflicts, especially those that are difficult to resolve or follow the same pattern and cycle.

Conceptualized in 1968 by Stephen Karpman, M.D., the recurring pattern can also be found in an abusive home and dysfunctional family environments. The roles switch as the drama plays out and becomes a vicious cycle. A destructive behavioral pattern.

Abuse was a dominant theme in my family of origin. We repeatedly played out the roles in this drama — and we played them well! 😉

While I’ve had my fair share of taking on all three roles, it is the energy of the rescuer that had become so much more prominent for me in recent years.

I’ve looked more closely into this energy pattern recently as it relates to my living situation here at Sugar Beach.

“It was my unconscious desire to be the white knight saving the damsel in distress why I had — unknowingly — chosen to stay at this resort in Sugar Beach — despite all the toxicity in the energies in my midst. I thought I could help the owner and the rest of the staff get out of the rut that they’re in. I thought I could assist them to be more empowered. I thought I was fulfilling my mission by doing that. I thought it was one reason — the purpose — why I was led here.”

Yikes! 😮

Because my growth and evolution is my focus and priority, I have been adamant to learn what I needed from all that I went through, before heading out to my next destination.

“Rescuers usu­ally grow up in fam­i­lies where their depen­dency needs are not acknowl­edged. It’s a psy­cho­log­i­cal fact that we treat our­selves the way we were treated as chil­dren. The bud­ding Res­cuer grows up in an envi­ron­ment where their needs are negated and so tend to treat them­selves with the same degree of neg­li­gence that they expe­ri­enced as chil­dren. With­out per­mis­sion to take care of them­selves, their needs go under­ground and they turn instead to tak­ing care of others.

[The Rescuer] often gains great sat­is­fac­tion by iden­ti­fy­ing with their care-taking role. They are gen­er­ally proud of what ‘helpers’ and ‘fix­ers’ they are. Often they are socially acclaimed, even rewarded, for what can be seen as ‘self­less acts’ of car­ing. They believe in their goodness as chief care­tak­ers and see them­selves as heroes.

Behind it all is a mag­i­cal belief that, said out loud, might sound like,’ If I take care of them long enough, then, sooner or later, they will take care of me too.’”

But this seldom happens. We are only setting ourselves up for more rejection.

Why?

As Forrest points out, those that we are drawn to rescue are needy and “can’t even help themselves.” They have no capacity to extend any appreciation for the help they are receiving.

Sometimes, they even feel entitled because of their ‘sorry’ state. The epitome of ‘Poor-me,’ remember? So, how then can they even be there for us and appreciate our gesture of kindness?

“It may seem unfair to criticize rescuers or rescuing, but a closer look at the dynamics of the interaction reveals the inequities in the situation. Rescuers will always be left unsatisfied because, in attending to others, they neglect their own needs and eventually become burned out. This is a double blow because a prime reason behind rescuing is to getattention – and, more often than not, rescuers are rejected by the same ones they are trying to help. The rescuer is then left feeling like a victim of the other’s refusal, and unappreciated…The person being rescued is also left dissatisfied, because the rescuer’s unconscious message is ‘I’m OK, you’re not OK – you’re so inadequate I have to do it for you.’ From this vantage point, the ‘rescuee’ typically turns on the rescuer, thus becoming a persecutor, saying ‘Leave me alone’ or ‘See what you’ve done.’ Such role reversals are the basic strategy at work in all games.”

Narcissism + Emotional Void = Rejection

When we rescue to satisfy an emotional need, particularly to feel valued, we may come across as desperate for approval.

In an earlier post, I talked about the danger of narcissistic inflation as it relates to compassion.

When our need to fill in an emotional void in rescuing is accompanied by our propensity towards narcissism, this sends an unconscious message to the one we’re helping that they’re ‘incompetent and inadequate’ that we even need to do things for them.

Granted that the ‘rescuee’ recognizes the rescuer’s gesture and is, in fact, appreciative of it. Our message — albeit, unconscious — of pointing to the ‘rescuee’’s incompetence and inadequacy only repulses them. It may even discourage the ‘rescuee’ to extend any form of acknowledgment or appreciation for our kindness.

When we rescue to feel valued, and that doesn’t happen, we feel used and abused. Betrayed. We feel victimized.

From Rescuer, we now become the Victim.

We switch from ‘Poor you, here let me help [fix/do it for] you,’ to ‘Oh, poor me. They can’t even at least thank me for what I’ve done for them!’ 😦

The rescuer passes on their resentments to the ‘rescuee.’ They start attacking, spewing out their distaste for the ‘rescuee’’s apparent lack of appreciation for what the rescuer has done. They recount all the things that they’ve given. They bully. Intimidate.

From the Victim, they now become the Persecutor.

And so goes the drama and continuing saga.

Sounds familiar? Can you relate? What has been your experience with being the Rescuer or the one being attended to by a Rescuer?

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About NadineMarie (Aligning With Truth)

I find much joy & fulfillment in sharing my experiences & insights through writing & blogging. I created the site, ALIGNING WITH TRUTH as a virtual center for healing where I share my thoughts & reflections, as well as the tools & resources that are helping me as I move along the path of awakening & coming home to the Self. As I live in joy & align with Truth, I AM shining my Light which is how I contribute to the planetary & humanity ascension. Blessed be. Namaste...💗💖💜Nadine Marie💜💖💗

I find much joy in sharing my experiences and insights through writing and blogging. As I live in joy and align with Truth, I AM shining my light. It is how I contribute to the planetary and humanity ascension.

You may contact me directly and send me a private message at nadinemarie33@ymail.com, but no junk mails please. Blessed be. Namaste...♥♥♥NadineMarie♥♥♥

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